Kimberly Morgan of Yuba City remembered making a mission model as a student at Stork Elementary in Alta Loma. "I built a mission when I was in 4th grade! I did Soledad! It was made out of cardboard and plaster! I just remember not being involved in ANY of it! It was more of my mom, grandmas and uncles project! They had me sign my name and be in the photos of the missions we visited! Haha this project really was the adults baby! Hahaha."

Becky Ramirez's son Sean, 9, made a model of the Mission San Francisco de Asís in fourth grade last year. "He really got a lot out of it," Becky Ramirez said of her son's project. "I learned so much through him. I learned what the El Camino Real was. ... He was just super, super excited."

Student Joseph Silva paints the cardboard church for a model of a California mission being built by fourth-graders as a class project at Our Lady of Grace School in Encino on January 20, 2009. (Los Angeles Daily News file photo)

Parent Lutzie Francisco adds a bell to the church in a model of a California mission being built by fourth-graders as a class project at Our Lady of Grace School in Encino on January 20, 2009. (Los Angeles Daily News file photo)

"I try to paint the whole picture," said Scott Schugel, fourth-grade teacher at Woodland Hills Elementary Charter for Enriched Studies. His students learn about the negative consequences mission life had for Native Americans, but also about how the missions were founded, built and operated. They also annually "refurbish" a mission outside the classroom that a previous class built from adobe bricks.

Kimberly Morgan built a model of the Soledad Mission when she was in school. Years later, her daughter Kaylynn (right, with dad and husband Andrew, back) also built a mission model for a school assignment at Lincrest Elementary School in Yuba City, where the family lives now. "Looking at hers versus the one my parents did, there are reasons why they did mine! I tried and failed big time! Hahaha. Hey, I made sure my kid got in on the process though! That's what counts!" Kimberly Morgan said.

Kimberly Morgan of Yuba City remembered making a model of the Soledad Mission when she was in fourth grade. Recently, her daughter Kaylynn made her own mission project for school. "(Kaylynn) had the option to do a mission report or do something that represents California! For nostalgia purposes I had her do the mission! I wanted her to experience the process! Granted we had to write a huge report and visit at least 2 missions, but I think she enjoyed the project!"

"I made a mission model in 1988/89. It taught me a lot about California and it was just a fun project. Please don't take all the fun out of school," said Long Beach resident Eang Taing, who attended Grant Elementary School. "If I recall correctly, mine was suppose to be San Luis Obispo and it was made out of glue and sugar cubes. And my kids did not make a mission project, which was kind of disappointing."

"I try to paint the whole picture," said Scott Schugel, fourth-grade teacher at Woodland Hills Elementary Charter for Enriched Studies. His students learn about the negative consequences mission life had for Native Americans, but also about how the missions were founded, built and operated. They also annually "refurbish" a mission outside the classroom that a previous class built from adobe bricks.

Students Victoria Silva, left, and Samantha Ochoa paint the walls on a model of a California mission being built by fourth-graders as a class project at Our Lady of Grace School in Encino on January 20, 2009. (Los Angeles Daily News file photo)

Mission San Luis Rey de Francia, in Oceanside, Calif., was founded in 1798. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)

A statue of Fray Junipero Serra, Founder of the California Missions in front of the San Gabriel Mission. (Photo by Walt Mancini, Pasadena Star-News/SCNG)

View of the San Diego Mission de Acala, which is the oldest mission in California, on December 2, 2004 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)

Founded in 1816 by Father Antonio Peyrei, OFM, the Mission San Antonio de Pala simple structure is an excellent example of mission architecture, as seen here on March 12, 2006. (SGVN/Staff Photo by Raul Roa/Celebrations)

Andrew Galvan, the first American Indian curator of Mission Dolores, or Mission San Francisco de Asís looks over a statue of Father Junipero Serra, in the cemetary of the historic church in San Francisco, Feb. 17, 2004. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

New state educational guidelines for fourth-grade history and social studies may mean a gradual end to the time-honored traditional school project of building a model of one of the 21 Spanish missions in California. We asked readers their thoughts on the change and their recollections of crafting the models, either with or without the help of their parents.